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Personal stylist Jennine Jacob on welcoming the multiplicity of personal style while interrogating the language we use around fashion and why that matters

Conscious Chatter

Release Date: 03/25/2025

Designer Olivia Cueva of Oakland Style Lab on the overlapping of biomaterials research, fashion design, & community-centered education as a multifaceted approach to rethinking fashion's systems show art Designer Olivia Cueva of Oakland Style Lab on the overlapping of biomaterials research, fashion design, & community-centered education as a multifaceted approach to rethinking fashion's systems

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 342, Kestrel welcomes Olivia Cueva, a radical dreamer, designer, technologist, and researcher, to the show. bridges creative technology, fashion, biomaterials, and storytelling to explore transformation, regeneration, and collective care. Her practice moves fluidly between community-centered education, speculative design, and research into sustainable and bio-based materials—always with the aim of sparking dialogue, nurturing resilience, and envisioning more just futures. “A lot of the research that I do now is focused on natural dyes and working with plants and seeing how the...

info_outline Dr. Joanne Brasch of the California Product Stewardship Council on SB 707 The Textile Recovery Act Of 2024 - the nation's first textile EPR bill show art Dr. Joanne Brasch of the California Product Stewardship Council on SB 707 The Textile Recovery Act Of 2024 - the nation's first textile EPR bill

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 341, Kestrel welcomes Dr. Joanne Brasch, the Assistant Director at the California Product Stewardship Council (CPSC), to the show. A network of local governments, non-government organizations, businesses, and individuals supporting policies and projects where producers share in the responsibility for managing problem products at their end of life, is California’s thought leader and expert on Product Stewardship and the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) movement. “We're most proud of our textile EPR program because we achieved a lot in SB 707 that set a new level, a new...

info_outline Constanza Gomez of Sortile on the questions we should be asking around EPR policy, a tool to support textile recycling, and the need for more research and data in the textile sector show art Constanza Gomez of Sortile on the questions we should be asking around EPR policy, a tool to support textile recycling, and the need for more research and data in the textile sector

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 340, Kestrel welcomes Constanza Gomez, the cofounder and CEO of Sortile, to the show. is a company focused on empowering the textile recycling industry with technology that enables the identification, sorting and traceability of textiles. “I was a much more hopeful person when I started this company and I've slowly become more of a skeptic. But that means I've leaned more heavily on the need for regulation versus people acting of their own free and good hearts. And so I think the opportunity is great. You can redefine and set real incentives to manage end of life better.”...

info_outline Beth Jensen of Textile Exchange on fashion's complex history with data, how the organization is addressing it through their open-source reporting and the need to ensure the search for *perfect data* doesn't hinder real action show art Beth Jensen of Textile Exchange on fashion's complex history with data, how the organization is addressing it through their open-source reporting and the need to ensure the search for *perfect data* doesn't hinder real action

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 339, Kestrel welcomes Beth Jensen, the Chief Impact Officer at Textile Exchange, to the show. Leading the organization’s efforts to achieve beneficial climate and nature impacts, Beth oversees key functions at including impact data and Life Cycle Assessment studies; impact tools and reporting mechanisms; reports and research; fundraising; and public affairs/policy. “A big part of vulnerability is really admitting that you don't have all the answers. So in sustainability, in fashion, apparel, and textile space, this is just the way we have...

info_outline Miranda Green of Atmos on disappearing climate data, how it's impacting journalists & their ability to tell important stories, and what we can do about it show art Miranda Green of Atmos on disappearing climate data, how it's impacting journalists & their ability to tell important stories, and what we can do about it

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 338, Kestrel welcomes Miranda Green, an investigative journalist focused on politics and climate change, to the show. As the author of Atmos Magazine’s weekly newsletter, , Miranda takes a weekly look behind the climate headlines to question how decisions are made, why they matter, and what they reveal about this moment. “I think data to me is, they’re facts. It's hard facts. It's looking at points that have been, you know, they're determined by scientists. They've been measured. They are proven points that then, I can use as building blocks to tell my story.” -Miranda THEME...

info_outline Gail Gallie of THE NAT on their inaugural gala and the need to focus on galvanizing global capital to close the nature finance gap show art Gail Gallie of THE NAT on their inaugural gala and the need to focus on galvanizing global capital to close the nature finance gap

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 337, Kestrel welcomes Gail Gallie, the founder of THE NAT, to the show. A new convening force for Nature, is primarily focused on galvanizing the private capital needed to close the nature finance gap; they just held their inaugural NAT Gala “Night For Nature” in September 2025. From working in advertising to co-leading the creation of the UN Global Goals Campaign, Gail has an extensive background in global advocacy and campaigning.  “I was pretty blown away that you could quantify the amount of money that was needed to fix where we are now to where we need to get to in...

info_outline Carry Somers on her new book Carry Somers on her new book "The Nature Of Fashion" and the importance of both restoring fashion's connection with nature and repositioning fashion in the broader narrative of ecology as a mirror of who we are

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 336, Kestrel welcomes author and visionary changemaker, Carry Somers, to the show. Co-founder of , the world’s largest fashion activism movement, and the author of a new book – , Carry has worked across the fashion space in various capacities, advocating for a shift towards transparency, fairness, and sustainability in supply chains. “Textiles reflect our connection with the natural world, but they're not just about utility. They're definitely about beauty as well. But they're also really an echo of our disconnection from it. And I realized during my research that that rift...

info_outline Lisa Kibutu of Regenerative Fashion Collaborative Exchange (REFACE) on developing textiles in Africa from Indigenous agricultural waste and embracing AI (ancestral intelligence) show art Lisa Kibutu of Regenerative Fashion Collaborative Exchange (REFACE) on developing textiles in Africa from Indigenous agricultural waste and embracing AI (ancestral intelligence)

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 335, Kestrel welcomes Lisa Kibutu, the founder of Regenerative Fashion Collaborative Exchange (REFACE) and Regenerative Textile Development Institute (RTDI), to the show. A tech-led social enterprise, was created to holistically address the negative impact of the global fashion industry on climate change, biodiversity, and the environment in Africa. With , she is building a pioneering research and development institution that leverages blockchain technology, zero waste operations, and regenerative agriculture to transform agricultural waste from Indigenous grain crops into...

info_outline Emily Mikhaiel of Nazeerah on honoring her ancestors and Egyptian cotton through regenerative, organic farming practices and a localized supply chain show art Emily Mikhaiel of Nazeerah on honoring her ancestors and Egyptian cotton through regenerative, organic farming practices and a localized supply chain

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 334, Kestrel welcomes Emily Mikhaiel, the cofounder and creative director of Nazeerah, to the show. A clothing brand inspired by the legacy of her grandmother, supports organic and regenerative farming practices to honor Egyptian cotton, and produces locally in Egypt to maintain direct relationships with their suppliers and reduce their carbon footprint. “There really wasn't waste while my father was growing up. Everything was either composted or if it was metal, it was recycled or reused or repurposed. If a garment was no longer wearable, they'd cut it up into strips and weave...

info_outline Cate Havstad-Casad of Range Revolution on building a leather supply chain that centers traceability and regenerative practices for the land, people & community show art Cate Havstad-Casad of Range Revolution on building a leather supply chain that centers traceability and regenerative practices for the land, people & community

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 333, Kestrel welcomes Cate Havstad-Casad, a designer, entrepreneur, and first-generation regenerative rancher, to the show. Cate’s work as a designer and land steward has evolved a great deal since she founded Havstad Hat Company in 2014. Today she manages Casad Family Farms with her husband, while building , a luxury leather goods brand focused on using 100% American, regeneratively sourced hides. “I love the idea of having things forever. I love the idea of a great leather boot being resoled again and again. My work in hats, I'm like the anti-growth capitalist. I'm like, you...

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More Episodes

In Episode 329, Kestrel welcomes Jennine Jacob, a personal stylist and Instagram phenom, to the show. You may know Jennine from viral videos that explore the many layers of nuance connected to the power of finding your own style.

“Anytime I see people quote unquote dressing for their body type, those outfits that look good, they can all be explained through style principles. The rule of thirds, contrast, proportion, texture, color theory. So why do we have to attach a value to a person's body shape when that's not even necessary? I really want to call into question why we use certain language because there's a lot of dismissal of visual language not just in fashion but also in the arts and architecture, and in the spaces that we move that have tremendous impact in how we navigate the world.” -Jennine

MARCH THEME — PERSONAL STYLE IS SO MUCH MORE THAN *VANITY*

This month, we’re shifting the narrative a bit toward the conversation around style. I recently did a post on Instagram about why I post daily outfits and how it’s not about vanity, and instead – it’s about storytelling, sustainability and branding. It resonated so much with folks and made me feel optimistic amidst a time that can be pretty gloomy lately.

I talked about the power of knowing the stories connected to your garments and how that storytelling can come through in the way you wear them. I talked about how when you have intimate connections with your garments, you tend to take care of them so they last longer. I talked about how identifying your personal style is a key part of building your brand, and honing in on the colors you consistently wear can play into determining or realizing your aligned visual identity. 

I even mentioned the whole “fashion is frivolous” annoying narrative, and how it’s totally ridiculous considering how much your clothing choices do actually truly matter. Turns out, that’s one of the many topics we crack open with this week’s guest.